C-C looking to recreate magic in return to Div. III South title game

Wednesday

Mar 5, 2014 at 10:33 PMMar 5, 2014 at 10:58 PM

The Warriors will play Archbishop Williams Saturday

Steve Sanchez Gazette Sports Editor @Chezsports

The Coyle-Cassidy girls’ basketball team are once again heading back to UMass Boston.For the second time in four years, the sixth-seeded Warriors will participate in the Division III South finals after beating 10th-seeded Ursuline, 56-28, in Wednesday’s Division III South sectional semifinals at Massasoit Community College in Brockton.The last time C-C (18-3) made an appearance in Boston was in 2011, when they beat arch rival Archbishop Williams for the South crown.The Warriors will look for some more of that magic on Saturday.“Either Bourne or Archies... They better be ready for us,” C-C head coach Mike O’Brien said. “Whatever team comes out, we’re going to be ready. We are ready to roll.”The Warriors wasted no time, putting away the Bears in this one.Keyed by the play of sophomore guard Nicole Bostick, C-C went on a nifty 24-4 run to take a commanding 36-15 lead midway through the third quarter. With the score 14-11 in favor of the Warriors, Bostick nailed a 15-footer and then connected on a deep 3-pointer to give C-C breathing room at 19-13.“She went in and I kind of got on her when she took a bad shot on her first attempt,” O’Brien said. “Then she stepped in for a 15-footer, which was a good shot. Then her confidence grew from there. I told her at halftime that she isn’t a sophomore anymore, you’re playing in a senior game. Let’s get going here. She played a great second half I thought.”No sweat or pressure for Bostick in this one.“It feel good tonight,” she said. “My team carried me on their backs. The team leadership really stepped it up this year, especially the seniors. I think that’s been helping us.”From there, the veteran leadership of Linsay Bumila, Steph Skiba and Brittany Perdigao turned their game up another notch. With leading scorer Laura Johnson held to just seven points total, the trio combined for 38 points in the game, with Bumila leading the way with a game-high 16 points.“We had good leadership back in 2011,” said Perdigao, who finished with 10 points, three steals, a rebound and five assists. “We kind of learned from them to be like a team. We were meant to be here like anyone else. I thought our overall team defense was really good. We played as a team, shot well and got our rebounds as well.”Then there was Skiba.The Eastern Athletic Conference all-star finished with 12 points, three steals, five rebounds and two assists. Skiba was the catalyst on defense along with senior forward Kiley Adams (six points, two steals, six rebounds and two assists) — who shut down any type of offensive flow by Ursuline.“The first half was really slow but we learned from our mistakes,” Skiba said. “We realized that they were going to out-rebound us if we did not box them out. Then we picked it up.”Bears head coach Caitlin Murphy-Valair was disappointed with her team’s performance.“Tonight was absolutely not our night,” Murphy-Valair said. “We came out flat. The girls were scared and we could not find that momentum that we had the last two games. Their subs made a lot of contribution across the board.”O’Brien was especially proud of his seniors after the game.“Linsay, I thought, was terrific once she got adjusted in the middle,” O’Brien said. “Stephanie, what can you say? She is unbelievable. Brittany was unbelievable as well defensively. I would not want to play against those two. They are so quick and their hands move so fast. You got to love the seniors. They are fighting, fighting and fighting.”The Warriors season continues on.Perdigao and Skiba both remembered the last visit to the Hub.“Beating Archies was a big accomplishment,” Perdigao said. “They were really good back then.”Skiba wants to treat this as another big game toward their goal.A trip to Boston is on the horizon.“I am excited,” said a smiling Bostick.